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Welcome to CycloneFanatic.com. I notice you haven't taken the time to register yet, now is as good of time as any:)

I saw something tonight. I saw the emergence of what could be a very, very dangerous team.

The first half was another, what is becoming typical, ugly half for the Sisters. Nebraska ran out to a ďbigĒ lead before Anna Prins took the team on her back. She scored the teamís first eight points and looked more like the player Coach F. recruited (i.e. potential). She hit shots inside and out. She rebounded. She played with energy. Early on it was Nebraska doing it all, making ISU look out of joint on offense while cracking our defense. They moved out to a 15-4 lead and Yori was doing the Big 12 version of a hockey line change every few minutes to keep fresh players on the floor. Then something happened. The ladies began fighting for rebounds. They had a quicker step. Slowly but surely they fought back into the game. It was Prins, Pop, and Bolte that kept this team in the game and a few minutes before the half it was 17-15 Nebraska. Just as it seemed the ladies were ripe to tie or take the lead, Nebraska made a brief spurt that pushed their lead to a five point (26-21) halftime margin. What was particularly frustrating is that ISU had a chance to tie with the ball and instead turned it over allowing Nebraska to score.

Iím sure the halftime discussion (shall we call it that?) was one that said 1) we have to play defense, 2) we have to move better on offense, and 3) when you are double teamed that means someone is open. Get the ball to them!

The second half was a wonder to watch. It seemed like the first half was a setup to give Nebraska too much confidence. Either that or we had doubles in for some of the players. The ladies were on fire. Their energy level and movement increased. It seemed like they were the team with the quicker step. It wasnít just the three mentioned already. It was the TEAM. The ladies defense was outstanding. They took Nebraska out early with a roundhouse and never let them regain their senses. ISU quickly took the lead with an 8-0 run and extended out to a 42-32 lead before Nebraska knew what was happening . They did scratch back to a 42-37 score. The reason I remember this is because that is when they stopped. They wouldnít score again until the game was nearly over. The ladies would go on a 22-0 run that was a thing of beauty. There were too many great plays to count.

Prins hit threes. She rebounded (yes, she jumped!!), she made shots underneath. The play I remember the most was when she got double-teamed down low and got a somewhat weak pass to Bolte for a killer 3. Prins is my player of the game as she kept us in the game early and helped put NU away in the second with her THIRD straight double-double. 18 points ELEVEN rebounds. Woo Hoo!!

Bolte. Wow. She is playing like a monster senior. She drove the lane and scored. She hit killer threes. She stole the ball. This girl is well on the path to being a first team all-conference player. She is currently the top three point shooter in the conference. She hit NU for 22 points behind 4 of 5 from the arc.

Loz. Her first half was forgettable and her second half was just as amazing. She dished assists left and right. Her movement and energy were twofold that of the first half. She dazzled us with some drives in the lane for baskets that left Nebraska defenders stuck in their tracks. Final line Ė 9 points, 7 boards, 7 assists, 2 steals.

Pop. The engine that goes and goes and goes. As usual her free throw shooting wasnít pretty, but this lady again went 100% the entire game. She ripped down 6 boards, played outstanding defense and dropped in 7 points. Very workmanlike game that weíve come to expect. Kudos to her.

The key player that I feel added to the energy and got some major quality minutes was Cole. Not much in the stat line, but she moved the ball well, didnít make mistakes and made a difference with her presence on the court.

People, if you didnít see this game itís hard to describe the metamorphosis that took place. We were never really rattled in the first half. But when this pit bull grabbed NUís leg it not only didnít let go, it tried to tear it off. This was the most dominating half of basketball Iíve seen since last yearís game against Baylor. Iím starting to see the pieces come together. Iím starting to see players assume the roles they are needed to fill. We have a scorer in Bolte. We have a dominating post presence in Prins. We have the junk yard dog in Pop. We have the floor leader in Loz. We have a suffocating defense. I definitely like what Iím seeing evolve this year.

Sad note of the game Ė Jess went down in the first half and had a NU playerís knee then come down on top of her head ramming it into the floor. She literally had a goose egg sized bump in the second half. She was diagnosed with a concussion and didnít return. Hopefully she will be able to come back for Saturdayís game.

Foul happy Ė the refs really called it tight tonight. It was the opposite of the Baylor game for ISU as NU had 22 fouls to our 10. I wouldnít call it homer calls as NU was very physical in their defensive play and got called for it.

Perfect rundown of the game.
Very proud of the second half effort of these ladies!
I was REALLY impressed by Pop's 2 (yes 2) drives to the hoop all the way from the top of the key. She looked like a polished post who had some pretty nifty moves.
glancing at the schedule, I'm glad we have a week to prepare for A&M. I'm sure Bill will have an impressive game plan for the Aggies!

Yes, a great summary, but I've almost come to expect that of you. You always do such a great job! Thanks for the hard work!

The last two games have really shown that these girls do not give up easily. Sometimes it's ugly and we hit some rough patches, but it isn't because they aren't playing hard.

Sounds like Schroll won't be playing in Colorado -- Fennelly said they'd plan that she wouldn't play. Tough loss as it would have been fun to see her get to play tonight against this Nebraska team. She will get her chance at Nebraska though. I hope she recuperates quickly!

When things are clicking like they were in the second half tonight, these girls are really fun to watch!

Great write up - right on. It was great to see Prinns, Pop, Bolte play to our expectations. Better, yet, IMO, was to see the confidence, ball handling, + defense from Cole when she went in. I expect to see her starting on Sat.

Great write up - right on. It was great to see Prinns, Pop, Bolte play to our expectations. Better, yet, IMO, was to see the confidence, ball handling, + defense from Cole when she went in. I expect to see her starting on Sat.

I thought it was also encouraging to see them focus on developing Big C. She is getting in the right spot; at the right time with hustle under control. She isn't perfect but I think she is going to be the go-to-girl for at least two years, if not three. I'm not discounting the contributions of Prins and Pop but, when they are off or in foul trouble, bring on the Big C.

Whether you think you can or think you can't;
you are right. Henry Ford

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